Developer rethinks State Street parking garage

Tuesday

Sep 3, 2013 at 6:26 PM

Jim Bridges says he was frustrated after Sarasota shot down his proposal over Sunshine Law issues

By MICHAEL POLLICK

With his plans for a high-rise hotel and condos above a city parking garage abruptly shot down last week, developer Jim Bridges is not sure he wants anything further to do with the city's State Street garage project.

Bridges learned last Thursday, during a City Commission meeting, that city attorney Bob Fournier had strong objections to the way city planning staff picked Bridges' concept over others.

Fournier said the selection process violated Florida Government-in-the-Sunshine Law and would leave the city liable in a lawsuit.

Bridges was stunned.

“You spend weeks and weeks working on something,” Bridges said Tuesday. “It took just a few minutes for the project to go south on us, and it was very frustrating.”

The city has a contract with another downtown developer that pledges to build a parking garage by February 2015 on a city-owned parcel at State Street and Lemon Avenue.

That developer, Isaac Group Holdings, has a development agreement with the city for its stalled Pineapple Square project, which would add retail and condominiums along Main Street and on a First United Methodist Church parking lot behind the Gator Club.

The garage is slated to have 300 to 400 parking spaces above ground-floor retail.

Bridges' Jebco Ventures Inc. was one of six considered by the city's planning department.

Separately, Jebco has plans for a town house development on Ringling Boulevard; an Embassy Suites hotel at North Tamiami Trail and Second Street; and a Walmart Neighborhood Market at Bee Ridge and Beneva roads.

Bridges proposed expanding the garage to a 10-story building, with two floors of retail, four floors of parking, a two-level Hampton Inn hotel; condominiums; and additional parking.

The project was well received by some downtown business groups before being shot down over concerns about Sunshine Law exposure.

“My personal opinion is that it was a wonderful mixed-use project that was going to put a lot of people downtown,” said Tony Souza, chairman of the Downtown Sarasota Alliance.

As with the other public-private projects being considered, the key would have been to sell the retail and other private-sector spaces as condominiums so that they would be separate from the city parking.

The city's sudden decision to backtrack in the planning process left other developers scratching their heads as well.

Casey Colburn, an attorney who represents Finergy Development and developer Dr. Mark Kauffman, put together a plan that called for a parking garage of five to six stories and an adjacent 10-story apartment building.

“We don't know what is happening,” said Colburn. “Obviously, we put together a proposal and we think it was a viable proposal and I believe all the parties still believe it is a viable proposal.”

On Friday, a day after the city decision, Bridges fired off a memo stating “I have chosen not to proceed as an applicant in any future proposals regarding the garage.”

But after cooling off over Labor Day weekend, he seemed to be entertaining the possibility of proceeding.

“It depends on which direction the city chooses to go,” Bridges said. “Do I want to get back into this and start all over again? No, I don't want to do that.”

City planner Steven Stancel will present four to five concept plans to commissioners that block out the 43,000-square-foot lot in different ways. No date has been set, but it will be soon, he said.

“I imagine they will pick a concept plan and we will mark it specifically, instead of having all the concept plans available,” Stancel said.

The city plans to spend $7.3 million to build its 300 to 400 parking spaces and 13,000 to 17,000 square feet of retail space.

The private sector components in the five vetted proposals thus far have had price tags ranging from $15 million to $25 million.

Ian Black Real Estate was retained by the city in March to sell the mixed-use components within the overall structure.

“Hopefully I would like the opportunity to see if I can maybe put the deal back together again,” said Black.

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